just an update and an opinion request - United Bimmer Community

**215BIMMER535** · 09-15-2007, 10:29 PM

hey all. i dont think i ever posted pics after the raccoon incident was fixed. well this is it. i now have an OEM M3 front bumper instead of the replica one i had before so i guess it worked out for the better.

...cleaned the whole car up today so i snapped a few pics inside too. (sorry one is blurry i know) since fixing the bumper i also swapped in a steering wheel from a 99 m3 and i f*ckin love it. i highly recommend it. if u think about it, your hands are on the thing the whole time u drive and its right in front of your face so its a very noticeable upgrade for you personally

anyway, the opinions i want pertain to wheels. i like my current ones but for some reason i've had an itch for contours recently. ive found a good price on a set i just dont wanna regret the way it looks later. so what i wanna know is which do u think look better on a e36 sedan the contours or the double spokes. im including a pic of an m3 sedan w/ contours to aid your decision haha.

one last question... how can i take better pics with the average joe digital camera (i.e. less contrast and more clarity) ?? thanks in advance guys

**Hoppy** · 09-15-2007, 10:32 PM

il be honest. my hatred of e36's is well known. but that is one SLICK looking car. congrats.

**215BIMMER535** · 09-15-2007, 10:36 PM

thanks hop i appreciate that coming from an e36 hater haha. but what about the wheels situation????

**215BIMMER535** · 09-15-2007, 10:47 PM

one thing i left out.. while i was swapping the steering wheel i popped out my cluster to replace a couple bulbs that were out. (left turn signal and odometer) well when i plugged it all back in i noticed the mileage and figured it was a milestone that was picture worthy even if its just a cell phone pic.

witeshark · 09-15-2007, 10:58 PM

Sweet

**xsperf** · 09-15-2007, 10:58 PM

i personally love contours and hate those ///motorsport wheels, meh, i dunno

also, i just put an m3 bumper on too, but now i kinda see why some people like the amber corners, it really puts some contrast to the car, i dont know if it is because i have a white car, but if i have clear corners, an all white bumper, clear headlights(obviously), clear foglights.. meh it looks to plain i guess

**MTurboPower3** · 09-16-2007, 06:07 PM

Nice it looks better than it did before. I never noticed you had a short shifter. Where did you get it?

**Linds** · 09-16-2007, 06:24 PM

I think the contours look better, but I think ltw's would look best.

Pic taking tips:
http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=417604

**mullethunter3** · 09-16-2007, 07:18 PM

Quote:

one last question... how can i take better pics with the average joe digital camera (i.e. less contrast and more clarity) ?? thanks in advance guys

For starters, better cameras have better (more) contrast. Some cheap cameras have "scene" modes that increase the contrast as much as that camera can "read". You can play with those, but you most likely won't see a difference. I would play around in the menu and see if there is a contrast or picture quality section. Either way, don't just run it on AUTO. As for more clarity, you won't get it unless you stop shaking your hand while taking pictures.

jj, just joshin! The clarity of your pictures is related to the hardware that your camera has. i.e. quality lens, quality chip, etc.

So, in short, nothing drastic. Sorry.

P.S.---> If you want better pictures of the interior, good luck, it's damn near impossible.

**xsperf** · 09-16-2007, 10:33 PM

in terms of taking good pics, sometimes i find when you kneel down and take a picture so you are at the same level of the car it, it helps, also never picture the car head on, like neither head on or directly on the side, always try a diagonal, but what the hell do i know?

**215BIMMER535** · 09-16-2007, 11:15 PM

thanks for the tips guys ill see if i can play with the camera stuff to improve photo quality. im gonna get some pics of my friend's bimmers on here too bc they are def pic worthy. as for the shifter its kinda funny cus all i did was take a shift knob from a Mini at work and toss it in (same mounting at bmw) and it dropped the shifter height that much! (close to a full inch) i like it cus its obnoxiously big and fits nice in your hand and its weighty and kinda throws itself into the gears. its a very simple thing i recommend if you dont feel like getting a short throw yet

**Numark318i** · 09-17-2007, 12:13 AM

Contours. ftw

drz · 09-17-2007, 01:24 AM

Contours

**DonB** · 09-17-2007, 02:46 AM

I love the Sunflowers on there at the moment, but reckon they suit a coupe better. If you had a chance to get some Contours then go for it, they're original equipment on M3 saloons after all and suit it perfectly.

Oh, and get some silver indicator bulbs in there.

**Rooz** · 09-17-2007, 09:47 PM

You did post pics of the "incident" and I think contours would look good on your car